Opening Moves
by Vathara
Summary: Starting out as a Duelist, Kittystyle. Follows Foreign xChange.


****

Opening Moves

A/N: Yu-Gi-Oh and X-Men characters belong to their respective creators. No infringement intended. Takes place sometime after "Foreign xChange". //Exchanged thoughts.// 

~*~*~*~*~

"...And I sacrifice my Sinister Serpent to summon Amphibian Beast, equipped with Big Bang Shot!" Todd Jensen, better known to X-Men and Brotherhood alike as Toad, slapped down the card of a creature that would've made the Black Lagoon look low-class. Yellow teeth showed as he snickered. "Say goodbye to your Mr. Volcano - and the last of your life points!" 

__

Gotcha! "Not so fast, Todd. Blast with Chain!" Kitty Pryde, a.k.a. Shadowcat, flipped over her trap card; a spike-chained bundle of dynamite. "That raises my monster's Attack by 500-" 

"Hah! He's still toast!"

"-And since you destroy this trap with my monster, I get to select one card on the field and destroy it." The slim sixteen-year-old couldn't help but grin as she picked off his field magic card. The rain had quit yesterday, the rest of the Brotherhood was anywhere but here, the other X-Men were nowhere near this quiet corner of the Institute grounds, and she finally saw a way to turn this Duel around. "Say buh-bye, Legendary Ocean." 

"Oh, man...." Todd shook dirty brown hair out of his eyes. "You still only got 500 life points left, 'Cat. And no monsters on the field - which means there's no way you can slap down anything over four stars. Next turn, you're history."

"Oh yeah?" She drew one card. _All right._ "Block Attack! Molten Destruction!"

"Aw, no...." Todd winced as his Beast was switched into its far less dangerous defensive mode. Kitty's Field Magic card now held sway, ready to power up any fire-based creatures that came into range.

"And I summon Fire Princess, equipped with Malevolent Nuzzler," Kitty went on. "Which puts her at 2500 to your Amphibian's 2000." She arched a chestnut brow as Todd cleared his Monster from the mat spread over the picnic table between them. "So who's going to be history next turn?" 

Todd stared at his hand. Stared at the game mat, where only his Furious Sea King stood between him and a red-robed Princess wreathed in flames. 

And grinned.

"Oh, this is gonna be fun." 

~*~*~*~*~  
Working his way through the multitude of forms that came with running an Institute full of teenagers, mutant or not, Charles Xavier sighed.

__

Paperwork. Bleh. Logan glanced over at the Professor from his own thin stack of forms. He'd gotten through about a third of it before throwing pens across the room in frustration; a new record. Amazing how much paper you had to fill out to keep the government from getting curious about you. "Come on, Charles. Sun's shining. Kids are out tearing up the softball field. For once in your life, play hooky."

"It's what some of those children are playing that worries me." Xavier rubbed at his temples. "Kitty's out at the back picnic table. With Todd. And those cards." 

__

So? Logan bit back the word, reached for something a little more diplomatic. "Kurt said he played."

The telepath frowned. "I believe in second chances, Logan. But to invite one of the Brotherhood over for a game of Duel Monsters...."

"She's low on options," Logan said bluntly. "Since you scared Kurt off the game."

"Yami did that rather effectively himself," Xavier said dryly. "I still haven't been able to purge all of the Celtic Guardian's memories from Kurt's mind. I shudder to think what's remained in Kitty's." 

~*~*~*~*~  
_If I could just draw... but I can't feel it in the deck. Damn! I was so close... _

"And the Toad wins again! Woo-hoo!" Todd thrust a fist in the air, did a fast little hip-shake around the table. "Man. That was close." He offered a hand. "Good game. You sure you just started playing?" 

Kitty shook it, determined not to flinch at the clammy touch. It wasn't Todd's fault his mutation gave him a built-in way to creep her out. "I've been studying strategies for about a week," she confessed. Studying files sent by Solomon Mouto and - surprise, surprise - one sent by cold-as-ice Kaiba himself. Trying to sort the dizzying multitude of strategies and tactics into a semblance of order, all the while nagged by a lingering sense of _I know these cards, I know this magic..._.

Shadows of memory, left by one who was a Shadow herself. The Dark Magician Girl. A card. A Monster. 

A living, breathing spirit called Mana, who'd taken Kitty's form to walk Earth for a few brief hours. As her dear friend Huya, the Celtic Guardian, had taken Kurt's. 

__

Note to self: next time Yami asks for help, get it in writing.

But he'd asked, and - desperate to stop Janus before anyone else was hurt, with no clue what they were getting into - she and Kurt had said yes.

Kitty could still feel that crystalline moment magic had swept over her, dark and chill and oh, so tantalizing. 

//Hi!// A girl's voice, not much older than hers, wrapping gently around her mind. //It's all right, we're all right. Just breathe. You're with me and I'm with you. Just breathe....//

And she had, every breath burying memories of the X-Men deeper. She'd known them, she just couldn't feel them. Not the way she felt magic. Not the way she felt that pull of love and duty toward her pharaoh's spirit, reborn once more into flesh as a boy named Yugi Mouto.

Mana and Huya were gone, but a hint of the magic lingered. Just enough that Kitty could feel a faint prickle in the cards, a sleeping tingle that might one day blaze to life in her hands. 

Just enough to fill Kurt's nightmares with swords.

__

And I still want it, Kitty thought, hiding a shiver. _Maybe the Prof's right. I mean, he doesn't say it, but - you just_ know _he thinks there's something wrong with me._ "So do you think we could do this again next week?"

"Yeah, sure. If my homies don't catch on. Not cool, to be walking X-Men turf and not trying to kick your skinny behinds all over the field." Yellow eyes creased in a wide grin. "Though I could say I was." 

Kitty _hmph_ed, folding the mat. "Wait 'til next time, Water-boy."

"Just bring it on, Sparky." Gathering his deck, Todd looked suspicious. "You don't want to play the fuzzball?"

Kitty shook her head. "He's not playing Duel Monsters anymore."

Todd's tongue lolled in surprise, like a chameleon that'd gotten himself stuck on a tissue paper ball. "Say _what?_"

"It's a long story." Kitty drew a deep breath. "I think you'd better hear it." 

~*~*~*~*~  
Xavier drummed fingers on the arm of his wheelchair. "She could have found another student-"

"In Bayville High?" Logan snorted. "What if she pulls off real magic one of these games, Charles? Jensen might be Brotherhood, but he wants to keep his skin in one piece just like the rest of us. He's not going to talk if one of her cards breaks loose." 

"A danger none of us would need worry about, Wolverine, if she'd simply store those cards away." Annoyance grated in Xavier's voice.

Logan crossed his arms. And waited. 

Xavier met his gaze. Sighed. "You truly think it's as instinctive as mutant abilities." 

"Your friend Solomon Mouto thinks so," Logan said pointedly. "Yami and Kaiba think so. I talked to Storm. She says Kaiba knew Kitty'd be good, just from meeting her. Not thought about it. Not heard how she played. _Knew_." 

Xavier looked away.

__

Okay, Logan thought, eyes narrowing. _Time to get to the bottom of this_. "Charles. There's not a kid in this building who couldn't pull off something lethal. Look at Cyclops. Look at Jean; if she ever cut loose with her TK and a roomful of knives, we'd be scraping the guy off the sidewalk. If Kitty left something phased inside somebody, they'd be just as dead as if she called down one of those cards' fire attacks on them." He leaned on Xavier's desk. "Why does this get to you?" 

"Because I know my students wouldn't abuse their abilities that way, Wolverine," Xavier said sharply. "It's a matter of control. Mind and body, working in harmony...."

Logan drew in a sharp breath. "The Heart of the Cards." 

Xavier nodded slowly. "Whatever that technique truly is, it's not physiological. It's not even a matter of mind - although there is a definite mental discipline involved, if what I sensed from Yugi and Kaiba is accurate. No, Logan. What they tap into, what I found left in Kurt's mind... it's pure emotion." The telepath folded his hands together in front of him, staring into the distance. "It's as if someone called one of your rages to heel, and shunted all that force, all that raw passion, into willing the world what they wanted it to be."

__

Damn. No wonder Yami hadn't flinched when Wolverine slammed him into a tree. _And Yugi lives with that in his head. No wonder such a cute little kid wasn't scared of me._ "I thought you said Kurt was okay."

"There was no deliberate harm done," Xavier admitted. "And Kurt is healing. His nightmares are a good sign, believe it or not. A way for the mind to process emotions it was never meant to hold. That intensity of emotion, so tightly channeled... it's simply beyond what an - ordinary mind is equipped to handle." 

Logan gave him a sidelong look. "Going to say human there, weren't you?"

"Evidently not, given the evidence. Out of all the people who've met Yami's magic head on, you and Kitty seem almost unscathed." Xavier managed a rueful smile. "And now I find myself wondering if that - intensity of emotion - is why our young Shadowcat was drawn to you in the first place. And if my approach to your difficulties with your temper is indeed the correct one."

__

Urk. Logan suddenly felt chill. "Hold it right there, Chuck. Are you saying Kitty's been watching _me?_"

"To determine how to handle her own emotions under stress. Emotions far more powerful, and dangerous, than any of us suspected. Yes, I think so." Laughter glinted in the Professor's dark gaze. "Welcome to responsibility, Logan." 

~*~*~*~*~  
"Yo." Todd paced around the picnic table, deck all but forgotten in his hands. "If this were anybody else saying this, I wouldn't believe it."

"I know it sounds weird-"

"Weird?" Todd scraped a hand through ratty hair. "Weird would be Blob leaving cupcakes in the kitchen. Or One-Eye tryin' to hit on Wanda."

"Scott wouldn't do that!" Kitty closed a hand on the table edge, forced down that flash of irritation. 

"What I said." Todd looked at her askance. 

__

Guys. They just don't get it. Scott would _never_ cheat on Jean. 

And if he did, she'd help the redhead hide the body.

"Some game." Todd spread a few cards in his hand. "So what makes you think I'm not gonna tell the guys about this?"

"Because you know that whatever Pietro knows goes straight to Magneto," Kitty said flatly. "You know the game, Todd. Better than I do. Can you imagine what Magneto might do if he found someone who could pull the cards up for real? Think about it. One Dark Hole, on top of a bunch of cops." 

"Oh yeah." Todd winced, picturing a card that would wipe out every monster on the field. "But... if they didn't _want_ to help him...."

"Mastermind," Kitty reminded him. Shivering a little at the thought of a mutant with the power to control minds, like the Professor. Only with a lot less scruples.

"Damn." Todd looked sick. Bit his lip. Bounced away a few steps. 

__

Don't go after him. Don't go after him, Kitty repeated to herself. _You played your card. He's got to think this through himself._

Todd stopped. Shook his head. "You know, I don't think you guys are right. Humans are never gonna let us blend in. Maybe you can pass, and some of the others. Lance, heck, even Blob can pass. But what about guys like me, huh? Mystique, or Nightcrawler if that holo-gizmo goes on the fritz again - heck, they see Beast, they'll shoot first and check him out later. And he was a _good_ teacher." 

"Still is," Kitty said levelly. "He'd like to see you sometime. Maybe you could drop by with some Chem homework? Dr. McCoy said he wants to be sure teaching you to make stink-bombs didn't go to waste." She turned up an empty hand. "I don't know, Todd. I'm not the Professor. I don't know if blending in is the right thing to do. All I know is, I don't want to hurt people. Not if I can help it."

Todd looked back at her, yellow eyes sad. "Sometimes, people don't give you a choice." 

"I know." Kitty stuffed her hands in her jean pockets. "So... same time next week?"

"Maybe." A shadow of Toad's usual cocky grin flashed over his face. "Or if I can find a Power of Kaishin card, I might see you sooner." 

"Power of...?"

"Just wait." Snickering, Todd bounced off.

~*~*~*~*~  
_Kitty's watching me. Kitty's watching_ me _to see how to handle her own temper_. Logan rolled that thought around in his mind, feeling at it from every possible angle.

It felt awful. 

"It's not nearly as bad as you think, Logan." Laying down his pen, Xavier rolled over to a window. Shaded his eyes against the sun, light glinting off bald skin, even as the warmth eased tension out of his shoulders. "While I would be the first to say your temper can be explosive-"

"No kidding," Logan grumbled.

"Still, looking back, you're better at channeling that rage into constructive activity than I may have been willing to admit," Xavier sighed. "While I may not approve of your ongoing feud with Sabretooth, and I do _not_ approve of Yami's attempt to kill him, it's clear that handling that man with anything less than the threat of lethal force results in more injuries." The Professor cleared his throat. "He's loose again, I'm afraid." 

"Hell." Wolverine growled, instinctively sniffing the air for any trace of his enemy. None. Yet. "Magneto?" 

"I strongly suspect Mastermind was involved," Xavier nodded. "The guards were convinced it was nothing more than a regular prisoner transfer."

"_Shimatta_." 

Xavier arched a dark brow. "I do know what that means, Logan." 

__

So? "Anybody dead?"

"No, thankfully."

"This time," Logan pointed out bluntly. 

"This time," Charles admitted. "But X-Men don't kill, Logan. I won't teach that in this school. Not now. Not ever." 

"Yugi's not in your school, Charles," Logan said, trying to be gentle. "And Kaiba sure as hell isn't."

"I know." The telepath looked down. "And what terrifies me is... I'm glad of that." 

__

That's how it is, huh? Try to live up to your ideals - and realize you might end up hiding behind people who don't. Logan shook his head. "I can't help you with this one, Charles. You have to work out what you can live with." 

"I can't take another human's life, Logan." There was an odd note in Charles' voice; almost pleading. "How do you live with the fact that you can?"

"Comes down to him or me, it's going to be him," Wolverine said flatly. "Don't know how your instincts are wired, Professor, but mine like that just fine."

Xavier swallowed dryly. "Kitty's such a beautiful child." 

"Yeah, she is. She's smart, and she's funny, and she wouldn't hurt a fly if it left her alone." _I can't lie to you, Charles. No matter how much you want me to._ "But if it came down to you or Sabretooth, she'd take him out." Logan faced him squarely. "And she'd cry. And she'd hurt. She'd hurt for a long, long time. But she'd _live_ with it, Charles."

Anger sparked in dark eyes. "No one should live with that, Logan." 

"Tell it to the world." _Hell with the paperwork._ "Think I'm going to snag a softball." In the doorway, Logan glanced over his shoulder. "You coming?" 

"Perhaps in a bit." 

__

He's going to brood. Logan worked his way toward the back of the mansion, following the sounds of laughter and wood smacking leather. _He's going to try and think his way out of the box. Damn it._

It's not something you think, _Charles. It's something you_ feel. _These are_ my _kids. This is_ my _life._

__

Kill for that? You damn well bet I would. 

"Logan?"

"Hey, Half-pint." Logan gave Kitty a wry smile. "Good game?" 

"Todd beat me two out of three," the brunette shrugged, patting her card-filled jacket pocket. "Think I'm starting to get the hang of it, though." She glanced toward the mansion. "I guess the Professor's still upset about this."

"He'll come around." Logan shrugged. "You do what you have to, kid. Once he sees you're being careful, maybe he'll lighten up." _As long as he thinks you're not going to drop a ceiling on somebody._

Logan held back a vicious grin. Now, that was one mind-controlling mutant that was not coming back to haunt them. Damn, but he _liked_ Yami.

"Hope so." Kitty toed the ground. "I don't want to upset him, you know? He's a good guy. If he hadn't talked my parents into letting me come here... I mean, phasing my sheets through the ceiling is one thing. If I hadn't come here, I could have really-" she swallowed. "Hurt someone." Kitty shrugged it off, looking away. "I really want him to be okay with this."

"He's not. Yet." Logan glanced toward the game, where Jean had just smacked a ball into the outfield. Where a grinning Jamie Maddox blurred into three duplicates, covering the descending ball from all angles.

The ball dodged all three of them.

"Beast is going to kill them," Kitty sighed, as Jean rounded second base and powers started flying thick and fast. 

"Not if I get there first," Logan growled low in his throat, heading toward the game-turned-riot. "Kids!"


End file.
